As the Padres watch the rest of the playoffs from home, the team has no choice but to look ahead.
“I firmly expect this group to come back and be ready to go for the consecutive playoff run for two, three, four years,” manager Mike Shildt told Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune. “That will be historic in San Diego baseball history.”
It’s hard to forget the shortcomings when this San Diego roster had all the right pieces to go all the way. But the puzzle remains unfinished until next year.
Beyond the loss, the Padres can look back at this season and reminisce about establishing a new identity in 2024. Shildt heaped high praise for his group of players and staff.
“It’s important, if you don’t have an identity you don’t stand for anything, just like I mentioned your faith, whatever your faith might be; if you don’t have it anything, you’re rudderless, right?” Shildt began.
“But when you have an identity, you have a clarity in how you’re going to compete — and the staff; this is a good opportunity for me to thank the staff right now.
Our staff did an A plus job this year with our players. The players get the credit for the success we had. I’ll take the ultimate whatever there might be for not getting where we wanted to.”
The Padres transformed into a respected ball club this year. They were highly favored to win the National League Division Series, despite the Dodgers finishing the regular season with the best record in baseball.
Shildt believes the Padres’ identity is only going to get stronger, but the team certainly cemented who they are this season.
Despite the devastating loss, the Padres can look to next season with their heads held high. Everyone league knows who they are and what the team stands for.
“The staff did a great job of creating the identity,” Shildt said. “The identity is only as strong as its challenges, and we were challenged a lot this year, and our identity only got stronger.
It’s now part of who we are. That’s why I can feel good about moving forward, that we stand for something that we believe in, how we play and compete, how we do it together, that will only get stronger and allow us to continue to have these moments in postseason and beyond.”
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